Excerpts

A Cock and Bull for Kitty: Lord Dunmore and the Affair that Ruined the British Cause
in Virginia

Excerpts from the Preface by James Horn

Poor Lord Dunmore, frustrated by British ministers who failed to grasp the seriousness
of the threat to his authority and despised by American patriots who viewed him
as little more than a perfidious Scot, Dunmore is remembered today chiefly as the
last royal governor of Virginia whose inept government helped push the colony into
open rebellion. Was he simply unlucky to be appointed when relations between America
and Great Britain were rapidly deteriorating? Or was he the author of his own misfortunes
by his consistent failure to exercise discretion in both his personal and public
life at a time when the fate of the British Empire in America hung in the balance?.
. .

In this sparkling and wonderfully-crafted essay, George Morrow turns the spotlight
on one important example of Dunmore’s tortuous relationship with Virginia: his involvement
in the court proceedings of Blair v. Blair. Much to Dunmore’s annoyance, not long
after settling into his position in New York he had been appointed to the governorship
of Virginia to replace the highly popular Lord Botetourt, but dragged his feet and
did not arrive in Williamsburg until September 1771. Under Morrow’s close reading,
the new governor is revealed as a man of simple affections, loyal to his friends,
who enjoyed good company and wine. For all the trappings of royal office he remained
at heart a bluff, military man, most at ease with other military men, such as George
Washington, with whom he often went riding, dined, and went to the theater. He disliked
duplicity, although not above it himself, and detested those who he believed had
abused his trust. Quick of temper, he was frequently incapable of restraining his
passions, which gave the impression of an arrogant and overbearing temperament.
There was little subtlety about Lord Dunmore in his political dealings. . .

Kitty Eustace Blair, the governor’s mistress, offers a perfect counterpoint, and
Morrow does a wonderful job in uncovering this remarkable woman, who is virtually
unknown to us. She was not the wife of a famous patriot and left no corpus of literature
or letters, only faint echoes of her vivacious character and finely-tuned mind.
In her marriage to the young Dr. James Blair and the subsequent scandal that blighted
her first few years in Williamsburg, it is all too easy to dismiss her as a scheming
gold digger, intent on securing a valuable annuity from her hapless husband. But
what comes through forcefully, in Morrow’s treatment, is her strong sense of rectitude
and adroitness in handling the challenges she (and other women) faced in the male-
dominated society of the eighteenth century. She was an expert in sexual politics,
using her charm, intelligence, and wit to overcome her severest critics. Everyone
liked Kitty. . .

James Horn
Vice President of Research and Historical Interpretation
The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation

Excerpts from "A Cock and Bull for Kitty," by George Morrow

Word of the death of Lord Botetourt, the fourteenth crown governor of Virginia,
reached Lord Hillsborough, the Secretary for Colonial Affairs, sometime in November
of 1770. Within a month, George III had named a successor and official notice was
on its way to America: He was to be John Murray, Lord Dunmore, the 40-year-old Scotsman
who was currently governor of New York.

A member of the House of Lords since 1761, his Lordship was already on record as
to how to govern Americans: “if left to themselves [they] would soon be quiet,”
he said. Dunmore’s comments were made during the Lords’ debate over George III’s
annual speech on the state of the American colonies and immediately after a caution
from Lord Chatham as to “how we invade the liberties of our fellow subjects.” But
Dunmore might also have been talking about the art of governing Virginia, an art
so expertly mastered by his predecessor, Botetourt, that under him Virginia’s government
was said to “almost execute itself." Dunmore was never very good at doing what he
preached. But perhaps the worst thing about having to succeed Botetourt in Virginia
was that from the very beginning he found himself vying with a saint who made everything
he did seem tainted – or worse..

• • •

Wheedling – repeating his wishes until he got his way – was typical of Dunmore.
It was the behavior of a child, endearing to a mother, but probably not to the King
of England. At least as jejune was Dunmore’s June 4, 1771 suggestion that the man
named to replace him in New York, Lt. Gov. William Tryon of North Carolina, should
simply be sent to Virginia instead. “There can be no doubt that Mr. Tryon would
be pleased with the exchange,” he told Hillsborough, forgetting that in arguing
for Virginia he was weakening the case for New York. “[A] stranger to both countries
[he said] . . . cannot have a reason for choosing other than that which is esteemed
the most advantageous as to emolument, and I am persuaded he will be equally agreeable
to the people.” So sure was Dunmore that he had found the right solution for everyone
that he told Hillsborough he had now decided not to “remove from New York until
he had a definite answer” to his proposal – which is to say he had gone from merely
pleading his case to declaring the entire question moot. This too was typical of
Dunmore: after cajolery, his favorite mode of persuasion was the artful fait accompli.